Maria Bello Leaves Fox's Touch

Maria Bello has left Fox’s touch. The veteran actress, who joined the series at the end of Season 1 after her NBC procedural Prime Suspect was cancelled, has mutually come to an agreement with Touch producers to say farewell to Fox’s hit midseason series.

While this is bad news for fans of Bello’s character, Lucy Robbins, there is some good news at the end of the tunnel. Season 2 of the hit series has already been shot ahead of the program’s February 8 premiere. Which means Bello will continue her role as a mother of a young girl who shares a talent similar to that of Jakob Bohm, a preteen who communicates through numbers, at least for a few episodes. According to TV Line, Bello will continue to appear as a series regular throughout Season 2, although there's currently no word on how Lucy Robbins will be written out of the series. Bello will certainly not return with the rest of the cast should the show get a third season.

While we don’t know the exact circumstances leading to the decision, the exit doesn’t seem to be mean-spirited or related to a huge disagreement between 20th Century Fox Television and the actress. Because the decision seems to have been a mutual thing, discussed by both the actress and the producers of the series, it’s likely that Bello’s character will get a satisfying ending to her story, as well. Which is certainly more than fans of Prime Suspect got.

Touch also stars Kiefer Sutherland and David Mazouz. The series returns to Fox’s primetime schedule on February 8 at 8 p.m. ET.